it's getting hot in here (zevie)
by howboutnow
Summary: Stevie Baskara and Zander Robbins care about each other a lot more than regular friends do. In fact, they just might be in love with each other. When prom season rolls around, Zander asks Stevie to go with him, planning on charming her and taking their relationship to a new level. However, at the last minute, a common cold threatens to ruin everything.


**Hi guys! This is a short little Zevie fic I've written. If you love sickfics, fluff, and Zander and Stevie then you should definitely like this ;).**

"Prom is overrated," Stevie Baskara remarked as took a bite of her turkey sandwich. Next to her, the fellow members of Gravity 5 gasped. Kacey, ever the drama queen, looked as if Stevie had just said she wanted to quit the band.

"But prom is incredible! You get to dress up, do you hair, nails-" Kacey's eyes went wide and dreamy.

"Yeah, no, not for me. Besides, no one's even asked me yet," Stevie replied, taking a sip of her milk.

On the opposite side of her, Zander Robbins felt his heartbeat fasten and his hands get clammy. Like Stevie, he also didn't have a date to the prom, even though it was only days away. At first he was thinking about ditching it and going to play a gig with Gravity 5, but A) there was no way in hell he could get Kacey to turn down her first prom, and B) he couldn't keep his mind off of a very special girl: Stevie.

Stevie and Zander had always been best friends, and Zander had always admired her I-don't-give-a-damn-attitude, her casual outfits, and the many laughs and dumb jokes they'd shared over the years. There was never a dull moment between them. From kindergarten to high school, they'd always been side by side. Yet, in recent years, Stevie had changed a little. Her hair was longer; silky and smooth, and it just cascaded down her back like a waterfall. Her once boyish frame had turned womanly: she had a small but perky chest, and enticing curves that made Zander want to sweep her off her feet. And the few times she'd worn a dress - Zander got butterflies in his stomach like he used to when he had crushes in middle school. She was gorgeous - so damn beautiful, and Zander just wanted to make her happy.

Kacey, fully knowing Zander's plan, turned to Stevie and started chatting up prom to be something great. "What if you went with your crush?"

"He's going with somebody else," Stevie mumbled.

"What if I told you that I'm making the playlist?" Kacey said with a smile.

"Kacey, I listen to your music everyday."

"I heard they're serving bacon burgers and cheeseca-"

"What?" Stevie's jaw dropped. "Damn. I need to find myself a date."

Looking over at Zander, Kacey winked to tell him that it was time. Nodding quickly, Zander ran off to get the surprise he had. "Just going to the bathroom," he said as he ran out. Kacey smiled when she saw his hands shaking. Despite how adorable she thought Zander was, she knew he belonged with Stevie. She saw how he looked at her when she was playing the guitar; how they always seemed to be touching one another, whether they meant to or not. She saw how much they cared for one another, and that's really all that mattered in a relationship.

Kacey saw Zander start to walk in with the surprise in his hands, and she immediately distracted Stevie. "Hey, Stevie, your shoe is untied."

By the time Stevie had looked down at her shoe and looked back up, Zander was standing directly in front of her, holding a bouquet of flowers and a large cake. As Stevie looked at it closer, she noticed that the cake said "Prom?" in thick, messy, purple frosting. It was sort of had to read. She smiled. _He must have made it himself_ , she thought.

"Stevie," Zander's heart was pumping rapidly and his feet were moving nervously. He was usually confident, over-confident, but for some reason, Stevie Baskara made him feel more nervous than ever. "I know we aren't dating - but - you're my best friend and I've never had a day without you that wasn't a blast. Please don't ditch prom to go and sit at home. I didn't want to go either, but I know it'll be great if I go with you. So, Stevie, will you please go to prom with me?"

Stevie's smile widened, and she felt blood rise to her cheeks. "Yes, you idiot, I'll go to prom with you," she gave him a light punch in the arm.

Zander grinned widely. "Great," He put the cake and flowers down on the table and leaned over to give her a quick hug, which she returned immediately. The rest of Gravity 5 cheered and clapped. All of them were glad to see the two going to prom together; everyone knew they were in love, except themselves..

"You didn't have to make me a cake, you know," Stevie mentioned. "But it's definitely an added bonus." She scooped up a lump of frosting on her finger and licked it off. "Mmm, I love cream cheese frosting."

Zander grinned, glad to know that Stevie liked his creation. "Yeah, I remember when you turned fourteen my mom made you that red velv- _ **achoo!**_ " Suddenly, Zander's nose twitched and sneezed loudly. He almost didn't cover it, just barely being able to swing his arm around his face in time.

"Ew, don't sneeze on me Zander!" Stevie said, laughing. "Bless you."

Zander sniffled as he looked back up. "It must be the flowers," he said, looking over at the bouquet sitting on the table. "I'm allergic to some types of flowers." He explained.

"Then why did you get them?" Stevie asked quizzically.

"I wasn't sneezing when I bought them, weirdly enough." Zander pulled a tissue out of his pocket and swiped his nose with it, sniffing loudly. "Geez, I'm sorry Stevie. I really didn't feel it coming."

"It's okay, Zander," Stevie said with a smile. "Just, don't bother with a corsage. I don't want you sneezing all night long at prom!"

"I promise you, that won't happen," Zander smiled at her, looking into her eyes.

 _Little did he know…_

…..

Zander woke up the morning of prom to a stuffy nose and a warm foreheard. _Oh no, not today, please not today,_ he thought, getting up out of bed and going over to look in the mirror. To his dismay, he looked awful. His hair was all messy, he had bags under his eyes, and his red nose made him look like Rudolph.

Zander ran his hands through his hair, frustrated. Why, of all nights, would he end up sick on prom night with a cold? It was the one night he had to spend with just him and Stevie, and he was trying to work up the courage to take things from friendship to relationship. How was he supposed to charm her when he looked like he hadn't slept in a week and his nose was running like a faucet? To add insult to injury, Zander knew that Stevie hated being around sick people. She was always bothered by sneezing, sniffling, and anything that had to do with illness. When Zander had been sick before, Stevie always looked a little disgusted by him, even though she tried to hide it.

Zander's phone beeped and he looked at it immediately.

 _Stevie: are you getting ready for prom Z?_

 _Zander: Hey I just woke up!_

 _Stevie: you just woke up now? it's already 2 pm_

Zander bit his lip and cursed himself in his mind. It was already 2 in the afternoon? Luckily, prom didn't start until 6 and he could get ready quickly, but he couldn't believe how long he had slept. He must've been really sick if he slept that late.

 _Zander: I know Stevie. Had a late night last night. I'm getting ready now_

Sighing, Zander ripped off his clothes and managed to get into the shower. The warm water felt soothing, and the steam helped to clear his sinuses a bit. After shampooing and conditioning, and enjoying the relaxation, Zander did feel significantly better

Stepping out of the shower, Zander shaved, making sure he looked clean and fresh. After he was done, he still looked a bit washed-out and he could see that he still looked a bit feverish, but he definitely looked much better than before.

As he went through the rest of his routine: brushing his teeth, doing his hair, and getting dressed in his tux, he thought: all I need to do is hide this cold for one night.

…..

Stevie Baskara was wearing more makeup than she ever had in her life - and it was a 'natural' look, according to Kacey, who had picked out the perfect dress, hairstyle and makeup for Stevie's night at prom. Luckily, Stevie actually liked the makeup she had on; it wasn't cakey and it enhanced her features. Her hair was softly curled, a light enhancement of her everyday look. She also was in love with the dress: it was flowy and angelic on the bottom, yet on the top it had a halter neckline with was tight against her bust. The back of the dress was even open, showing her shoulders and the small of her back. It wasn't too revealing, but "just enough to make Zander go wild," Kacey had said.

"Kacey, I'm sure Zander isn't going to 'go wild'," Stevie argued. "He just asked me because he feels sorry for me. No one else was going to ask me."

"Are you kidding me?" Kacey, who was putting on earrings and smoothing out her curve-hugging dress, turned to face Stevie. "Have you seen the way he looks at you? He's in love with you, Stevie."

Stevie smiled, but looked down at her feet. "We're just friends."

"Yeah," Kacey snorted, "friends who are in love with each other.

Suddenly, the doorbell rang. "That's him!" Kacey announced. "Come on, go get him! I'm not done yet."

Stevie rolled her eyes and went to go down the stairs. "You'll see, he's just my best friend."

As Stevie walked downstairs, she found herself getting butterflies in her stomach. Would Zander hug her, or kiss her on the cheek when he saw her? Would he tell her how beautiful she look? Would he give her that smile - _that_ smile, that always turned her knees to Jell-O?

She opened the door with a smile. "Hi Za-"

" _ **ACHOOOO!"**_

Instead of being greeted with a sweet and charming smile, Stevie was greeted with a loud and messy sneeze. Taken aback, she stepped backwards, unsure of what to do.

Zander, standing at the door, had been trying to hold back a sneeze since the moment he rang the doorbell. Unfortunately, he sneezed at the very moment Stevie opened the door. Bringing a tissue from his pocket up to his face, he turned to the side and blew his nose (he tried to do it quietly, but it was louder than expected). He turned back to face Stevie. "Sorry, I -" his jaw dropped when he saw her. Everything about her - her body, her hair, her sweet face … perfect. "Stevie," he said, "Wow. You look … incredible."

Immediately, Stevie felt herself blush. "Oh … thank you, Zander," she smiled.

Zander smiled back at her, then sniffled again and wiped at his nose with the tissue.

It was at this moment that Stevie realized how bad Zander looked. His nose seemed red, and his eyes seemed a little duller. And, it might just be the lighting, but his skin looked pinker, like hers did when she had the flu or a fever.

"Zander …" Stevie started. "Are you alright? You don't look too good."

"Oh, me?" Zander said quickly, defensively. "I'm fine. I just - my mom planted some new flowers in the garden. She completely forgot about my allergies. I've just been sneezing all day."

"Oh," Stevie felt her body relax. "That's good. I thought you might've caught that cold that's going around."

"No," Zander shook his head. "I'm perfectly fine. I just need to put some distance between me and flowers." He smirked.

"Well," Stevie smiled, "Luckily, I don't think there will be any flowers on the dance floor."

Zander smiled, nervously. "Right. Luckily."

 _Please_ , he thought, _please let me stop sneezing. Let this fever go away and my sniffling and runny nose stop. Stevie cannot think I'm sick, or she won't even want to touch me._

….

By the time Stevie and Zander arrived at the prom venue, Zander was feeling worse than ever. His fever had seemed to spike and, more than anything, he wanted to go home and rest. Dancing all night seemed like the equivalent of running a marathon.

"Wow," Stevie breathed, looking around at the room. It was all lit in blue lighting, with a large crystal punch fountain and fairy lights strung around the ceiling. "I can't believe I'm saying this, but Kacey was right. This _is_ beautiful."

Beside her, Zander smiled. Seeing the wonder light up her bright eyes made him feel like he was in the presence of something incredible. Of course, in his eyes, Stevie Baskara was the most incredible girl in the world.

"And to think you almost didn't go," Zander nudged her arm playfully.

"You almost didn't either!" Stevie nudged him back, harder. Turning back towards him, her smile faltered a little. "Whoa. Zander, you're sweating. Are you okay?"

Zander quickly wiped his forehead off with his hand. "I'm completely fine," he lied. "It's just really hot in here."

Stevie raised an eyebrow. "I don't think it's hot at all."

"Yeah, but … you aren't wearing a suit!" Zander tried to convince her.

Stevie looked a little suspicious, but she let it go. "Fair enough," she said.

They made their way towards their table. Kacey and Kevin, who went together as friends, were already sitting there next to Nelson, who had gotten lucky enough to take Grace to the prom.

"You two look amazing!" Grace squealed.

Stevie blushed again. "Thanks," she said softly, looking over at Zander with soft eyes after thanking Grace.

Zander felt his hands go clammy (and not from the fever). He almost felt a little nauseous, but it definitely wasn't because of the cold. No, Zander Robbins was absolutely love _sick_.

Throughout their dinner, Zander managed to keep himself looking alright. Stevie was pretty focused on the food in front of her, and everyone was talking loudly, so luckily if he started sniffling or had to use a tissue, no one really noticed. However, as they stepped onto the dance floor, he knew he'd have a tough time hiding it.

For most of the fast songs, Gravity 5 was dancing all together, and Stevie seemed so consumed in her dancing that she didn't notice Zander. Not even when he started sneezing and ran off to the bathroom so no one would see.

The moment Zander stepped back onto the dance floor, a slow song started. People immediately started pairing up. His eyes searched the crowd for Stevie, until they found her in the corner, looking around like a lost puppy.

"Hey," Zander approached her, and they both smiled. "May I have this dance?"

Stevie giggled, almost sounding as girlish as Kacey did. "Of course." She wrapped her arms around Zander's shoulders, and he put his around her waist.

As the two danced, looking into each others' eyes, they both felt closer than they ever had before.

"Thanks for asking me to this dance, Zander," Stevie whispered. "This night has been incredible."

"There's no one I'd rather go with than you," He looked right into her eyes, and let his hands fall lower around her waist.

They kept their eyes locked on one another … until Zander's nose began to twitch.

Stevie noticed it almost immediately, looking quizzically at Zander, not understanding what was happening at the moment. Zander could feel his nose, how itchy and uncomfortable it felt, but he was determined to brush it off, not wanting to break away Stevie. "Ahhh …" he felt his chest rise and tighten, feeling it coming. Then, he remembered a trick that he was taught when he was younger. If you bite the tip of your tongue, you can stop a sneeze. Zander did just that, and the feeling went away.

"Sorry, I - _**ACHOOOOOOOOO!"**_ Just as Zander was feeling like he'd fought the feeling, he burst into a huge sneeze: right onto the beautiful girl in front of him. He sneezed on the girl he was in love with.

"Oh-" Stevie backed away immediately, wiping her face with the back of her hand. She looked absolutely disgusted, which shattered Zander's heart. "I-I … Zander, did you just-"

"I'b so, so, so sorry Stebie," Zander's voice was congested as he apologized to Stevie. "I cad't beliebe I just did thadt." He sniffled loudly. "I'b _disgusting_."

"Hey…" Stevie looked at Zander and saw how flushed his face looked, took in the tiredness of his eyes, and how could she ignore how sick his voice sounded? "Zander, you look awful … have you been sick this whole night?"

Zander swallowed the lump in his throat, feeling guilty. "I told you, I'b allergic to-"

Stevie shushed him and put the back of her hand on his forehead. "Zander, you're burning up!" she exclaimed. How could she have not noticed how ill her best friend was? The whole night she was just thinking of herself. "Allergies don't give you a fever. Come on," she lead him away from the dance floor and sat him down on at the table. "Why didn't you tell me you were so sick?"

Zander rubbed his nose harshly before speaking. "I wogke up this morning with a cold," he admitted, "but I didn't want to ruid our dight together."

"First of all, you need to blow your nose so I can understand what you're saying," Stevie told him. He complied, bringing a crumple tissue from his pocket up to his nose and blowing harshly. "Secondly, your health is so much more important than prom. It's just a stupid dance. I care way more about you than a dance," Stevie said, almost angrily.

Zander sighed. "I care about you, too," he said, looking at her with wide eyes. "I wanted you to have this experience. I wanted us to have this memory. I just didn't want it to be you remembering me being sick and sneezing all over you … I know you hate sick people. You probably think I'm gross."

Stevie shook her head. "You're completely wrong, Zander. I don't care about the sneezing and the sweating … I care about _you_. And I don't want you to push yourself to go out when you're sick as a dog just to make me happy. I would've rather stayed home and made you some soup or something."

Zander smiled shyly. "I do love soup when I'm sick." He suddenly became aware of how tired and worn-out he was from the night. "But I'm too tired to eat anything anymore," he admitted.

Stevie took his hand. "Let's take a cab home. You can crash at my place."

"Alright …" Zander said through sleepy eyes, holding her hand tightly.

…

In the cab, Zander ended up falling asleep, his head resting on Stevie's lap. Stevie smiled when she heard him snore loudly, the result of his congestion due to the illness. He looked peaceful, and was finally get the rest he needed.

When they got to Stevie's house, she shook him awake. "Hey. Zander, you gotta get up," she shook his shoulders.

Zander's eyes opened slowly. "Mmmhhhmm …" he mumbled, reaching for his wallet to pay the taxi driver, but Stevie had already handed him a twenty. "Thanks so much," she said to the driver, moving to help Zander stand.

Zander was incredibly weak and tired, and Stevie ended up having to prop him up with her shoulders. On the way to the door, she almost dropped him on the ground. "Oh God, Zander," she said worriedly. "You really should've stayed home."

She helped him up to her bedroom, and threw him a pair of her brother's sweatpants and a t-shirt. "Change into something comfortable," she told him as she left the room, going to the bathroom to change into some sweatpants and a t-shirt of her own. When she returned, she found Zander with only the sweatpants on.

"Shirt's too small," he mumbled, looking dazed.

Stevie sighed and motioned for him to get under the covers. She soon followed him, finding herself more close than ever to Zander. She could feel his warm skin, and was just centimeters away from his face.

"Stevie," Zander said softly, opening his eyes, "thank you. For taking care of me."

"Of course," she said softly, her eyes moving towards his lips.

"You can't," Zander told her, even though he wanted to kiss as much as she did. "You'll get sick."

"Zander, I've been holding your hand and dancing with you all night. Whatever germs you have are already infecting me," she said, laughing softly and looking into his eyes.

"You don't know that," he told her, but all Stevie could focus on was how adorable he looked with his bright red nose and messy, dark hair.

"I don't," she agreed. "But I'll take my chances." The two collided into one another, Zander and Stevie's lips locked perfectly together. Stevie's hands made their way to Zander's chest, and both of their hearts beat strongly together, having finally admitted their love for one another.

After kissing, Zander's breaths were uneven and Stevie was shaking. Zander couldn't keep his tired eyes off of her. "Wow," he breathed, feeling incredible.

Stevie smiled caringly. "Wow," she agreed, running a hand through Zander's hair. "Now get some rest," she instructed. "You're gonna need to have some strength if you want to do that again."

Zander smiled, and winked at her. "Okay, Stevie," he said quietly, before closing his eyes. Not long after, Stevie's eyes closed too, and she drifted off to sleep in Zander's arms.

 **That's it guys! I really hoped you enjoyed it. I love writing sickfics and also Zevie fanfics so if you guys have any more ideas please let me know! Tell me what you thought of this!**


End file.
